• Euro 2012 qualifiying

Captain Keane revels in Ireland victory

Ireland beat Estonia 4-0 in Tallinn © PA Photos

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Republic of Ireland captain Robbie Keane hailed a great team performance after his side powered to an impressive 4-0 win over Estonia.

The result means the Republic take a commanding lead into the second leg at the Aviva stadium on Tuesday where Keane is confident his side can finish the job.

"We came here to get a result and full credit to the players they put in a great performance from the start," Keane said. "They had a couple of players sent off but I think we had the job done before that. We got the early goal and managed to kick on from there.

"To come here and win 4-0 is a great result. The confidence that we have in the squad and the way we played in the whole campaign we deserve to go through and we are looking forward to Tuesday night now.''

Keane was also full of praise for his fellow goalscorers.

"Jonathan Walters is brilliant. He's a handful and he deserved to score tonight. Keith [Andrews] was superb from the start and he drove us on from midfield.''

Andrews, who opened the scoring for Ireland in the 13th minute, admitted the result had come as a bit of a shock.

"It hasn't sunk in yet,'' he said. "It's hard to believe we've come here and won 4-0. To get four goals and keep a clean sheet is a fantastic result.

"I thought we played very well tonight, harried them and fortunately got the result. If we keep a clean sheet it will be a fantastic night (at the Aviva). Over the past few years this group has really come together.''

Republic of Ireland manager Giovanni Trapattoni congratulated his team after they all but booked their place in the Euro 2012 finals.

"We are proud of our players because of their commitment, their mentality and their belief," he said. "They believe what we ask them. 90 minutes is always difficult and now we can say we have a good result.''

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